This only happened by re-experiencing and returning to school to study counselling and something quite surprising happened, I discovered I am academic after all. Now I am definitely more internal with my evaluation of myself around being smart enough. I wonder what getting a вЂњNot YetвЂќ grade may have had on my confidence and mindset. This impacted my belief in my ability when it came to academic work, I really believed I wasnвЂ™t smart enough. As I believed what my teachers told me and my failing grades confirmed to me what they said. I operated from an external locus of evaluation around not being book smart most of my adult life. Saying I canвЂ™t вЂ¦вЂ¦ (yet) is hugely motivational and powerful. It gives you a path into the future.Д«y adding the word вЂњyetвЂќ to any negative internal narratives will positively impact upon our mindset. ButВ if you get the grade вЂњNot YetвЂќ you understand that youвЂ™re on a learning curve. This was fantastic, because if you get a failing grade as I constantly did, you think, IвЂ™m nothing, IвЂ™m nowhere. вЂњNot YetвЂќДweck states she had heard about a high school in Chicago where students had to pass a certain number of courses to graduate, and if they didnвЂ™t pass a course, they got the grade вЂњNot Yet.вЂќ So, I believed what I was told, who am I to argue. Essentially saying I try hard but I am not very clever. My report cards always gave me a poor academic grade followed by a positive grade in effort. I was told by teachers I wasnвЂ™t very book smart. This impacted me academically all the way through school. When I was young, I was shamed by a teacher for my poor spelling in front of the class and I was mortified and remember feeling deeply ashamed. How our main attachment figures responded to our failures and the conditions of worth placed upon us as we developed, would have a huge impact on our developing mindset. I believe how we feel about failing relates to our childhood experiences around failure. One thing that struck me about growth mindset theory is how it connects well to person-centred personality theoretical concepts, as well as other psychodynamic developmental theories I am studying. My research looks at the origins of these mindsets, their role in motivation and self-regulation, and their impact on achievement and interpersonal processes.вЂќ Growth Mindset Her theory of the two mindsets and the difference they make in outcomes is incredibly powerful.ДЄs she describes it:В вЂњMy work bridges developmental psychology, social psychology, and personality psychology, and examines the self-conceptions (or mindsets) people use to structure the self and guide their behaviour. She spends her days looking at what makes people succeed (or not) and whatвЂ™s within our control to nurture our own success. This week we are looking at growth mindset by Carol Dweck who studies the area of human motivation.

Carol dweck growth mindset book